Tag Archives: English

pernicious : having a harmful effect, especially in a gradual or subtle way. prone: likely to or liable to suffer from, do, or experience something, typically something regrettable or unwelcome. Hindsight bias has pernicious effects on the evaluations of decision makers. Consider low-risk surgical intervention in which an unpredictable accident occurred that caused the patient’s…

Scorching: very hot, extremely hot ( as verb: burn the surface of (something) with flame or heat.) Noah Walker stands carefully on the roof of his house, takes a moment to ensure his balance, and removes the Yankees cap from his head to wipe the sweat off his brow under the scorching early-June sun. Scorching:…

When I was in a bus towards Palo Alto this morning there was a man who was talking loud. First I thought he was talking to some one. Then I realized he was talking to air. At first stop he got out. And a woman saying ‘I am nervous because he is talking a loud’…

trotting: (with reference to a horse or other quadruped) proceed or cause to proceed at a pace faster than a walk, lifting each diagonal pair of legs alternately. Synonyms: run, jog. If it notices that your goal was to go running every morning at 5am but then notices that you never start trotting until 7am…

arbitrary: based on random choice or personal whim, rather than any reason or system. rationing: allow each person to have only a fixed amount of (a particular commodity). ploy: a cunning plan or action designed to turn a situation to one’s own advantage. Anchoring effects explain why, for example, arbitrary rationing is an effective marketing ploy.…

Only much later did men encase their legs in a single bifurcated garment, trousers. For women the legs were enveloped in long skirts, with no bifurcated garment of any kind worn until the mid nineteenth century. The gender division of dress was thus much more pronounced than in Near Eastern dress, with garments of entirely…

The tendency to like (or dislike) everything about a person including things you have not observed – is known as the halo effect. You meet a woman named Joan at a party and find her personable and easy to talk to. Now her name comes up as someone who could be asked to contribute to…